I was so glad I contacted Kinga at Your Roots in Poland. At the time I was really struggling to locate where the births-deaths-marriages records were held for my fathers family village. I found it difficult for a number of reasons:

1) I was in Australia and I didn’t speak Polish
2) My father, who immigrated from Poland after WWII, had passed away and the information I had about the family history was sketchy
3) My father was from a village that is now part of Ukraine

I had sent emails (in English) to the archives in Warsaw to ask for help. They emailed me back (in Polish) which was fantastic, but I found their response confusing and did not know how to proceed.

I searched the internet for a genealogist to help me and was willing to pay for services. But who do you trust? I sent emails to 3 genealogists. Out of the 3, I received one response but she did not give an indication that she was willing to help. Then I tried Kinga at Your Roots in Poland. I liked the fact that they were really clear on the website about who they were and appreciated that they were associated with a university. Kinga responded almost immediately and offered her teams services. I could tell that she was passionate about helping people find their roots.

I was lucky enough to met Kinga and Joanna when we visited Krakow last year (2013). They have been so helpful at every step of the way, speaking excellent English and really demonstrating their extensive knowledge of where archives are held and the people who manage the archives.

Ultimately, Kinga sub-contracted the right genealogist who gained permission to search in the right archive. There was only a small cost for research services. They found the metrical records for my father’s birth and my grandparents marriage. I was so overwhelmed – until then, I did not even know if these records had been destroyed during the war.

I am so glad I contacted Kinga. Without any reservations, I would highly recommend Kinga and her team’s services.